Earlier this week, Kristi Hovington and her family made the trip from their current home of Barcelona to celebrate their daughter’s 14th birthday with what promised to be an unforgettable night at one of Taylor Swift‘s “Eras Tour” shows in Vienna. Only, after a planned terrorist attack resulted in the arrest of two local teenagers and the subsequent cancellation of Swift’s three Austrian concerts, it ended in wasted airfare, sunk hotel costs and, of course, crushed dreams.
“Obviously, she was devastated when we heard the news last night,” Hovington tells Variety of her daughter, who’s an aspiring singer-songwriter. Hovington, an educator and a school librarian, was there with her partner, her daughter and her other two children. “There were a lot of tears shed in the hotel that we’re at. [Vienna] is almost entirely comprised of people from all over the world who came for the concert.”
Hovington, a native of Atlanta, Georgia, was one of the tens of thousands of attendees who descended upon the European city to witness the Eras tour, which has just five more dates slated for London next week before completing its overseas run. After news struck yesterday that the terrorist attack was thwarted and local promoter Barracuda Music canceled the performances, the streets of Vienna became something of a vigil for the Swifties who came together to mourn the loss — not just of the shows, but also the time and money spent to get there.
But the cancellations also had an unexpected effect, unifying those Swifties in a time of danger and uncertainty. Fans filled the streets in photos and videos posted on social media, and local churches and business came out in support of the Vienna Swifties.
On social media, attendees documented chalk drawings on the pavement outside of the stadium where Swift was slated to perform that referenced Swift lyrics: “Fuck the patriarchy (and terrorists),” “This is why we can’t have nice things.”
Photos and videos showed fans congregating on Vienna’s Corneliusgasse due to its similarity to “Cornelia Street,” Swift’s song that was included on 2019’s “Lover.” Throngs of people rallied together to sing “Cruel Summer,” an ironic nod to their current situation. One couple even got engaged on the streets while the crowd belted out “Love Story.”
“This [is] happening right now in Cornelia Street,” wrote one on X. “We create our own safe spaces you stupid spider boys can’t destroy.”
Local establishments came out in support of Swifties. “My daughter heard a Taylor Swift song playing in the street, and she just stopped,” says Hovington. “There was this sign outside of this building. We didn’t realize it was a church, but there was a sign that said, ‘Dear Swifties, we sympathize with you. You’re welcome to come and sing your sadness away.’”
She said they walked in “not knowing what to expect” and saw that the “pews were filled with people crying and singing.” The Eras tour song list was blasting out on the speakers in the church.
“Everybody had their arms around each other,” she continued. “It was just this really beautiful communal moment, just recognizing that we were all obviously sad that we can’t see Taylor and so sad that this horrific thing happened, targeting mostly women and girls at a concert. But the Swifties are very resilient, and people just got on about their day and were kind and swapping friendship bracelets and singing songs anyway.”
Another attendee, Josie Martin, shared her own experience with Variety about her trip to Vienna. A 28-year-old elementary school teacher from Grand Rapids, Mich., she made plans over a year ago to attend the concert with her family. Her brother, who lives in Madagascar, miraculously secured a VIP ticket code off of Reddit last year, and they coordinated a European family vacation, complete with a stop at the Eras Tour.
After hearing news of the cancellations while in Vienna, she and her family found fans singing together in the streets. “Walking around was kind of adorable,” she says. “I’m an elementary teacher, so it was kind of adorable seeing all these young girls, but then also the juxtaposition of their parents figuring out accommodations is so sad. They’re trying to pivot and be positive and take them around town. They’re all exchanging bracelets on the street, which is adorable. When we heard all the singing, my mom was like, ‘Do you think people are protesting?’ I was like, ‘No, they’re literally singing “You Belong With Me.’”
Despite the canceled concert and thwarted terrorist plot, people were “trying to stay positive.”
“When we were walking around St. Stephen’s Cathedral, there were people in their outfits. Like, you know they picked that out for tonight because they’re wearing poofy, sparkly dresses. This is their one outfit they probably brought, or they just wanted to wear it so they could wear it. That was cute but kind of sad.”
With a potential tragedy prevented, Swifties showed out and proved their loyalty – not only to Swift, but to each other. The hashtag #ViennaTStheErasTour continues to trend across social media apps with spectators from all over the globe chiming in with words of encouragement for the disappointed fans.
“We may not have gotten to hear ‘August’ live in August like we thought, but we still got to sing it together,” one fan wrote on X. “This healed something in me. Swifties are so beautiful. I will never forget this.”
From Variety US